Overfishing is a key stressor in many coral reefs, affecting their function and ecosystem services. In the Gulf of California, 50 years of artisanal and recreational fishing have removed most of the largest and most vulnerable fish species, the Espiritu Santo Archipelago (ESA) is a marine protected area (MPA) where artisanal and recreational fishing are allowed in most of the natural reefs, while the artificial reefs (wrecks) are fully protected. An important question under such circumstances is whether artificial reefs can serve as surrogate habitats for the natural reefs. To address this question, we characterized the fish community (species richness, abundance, differences in taxonomic structure) and analyzed the obtained data by multivariate ordination and similarity analysis. The highest species richness was found in the artificial reefs, with total of 83 species, of which 21 species were exclusive. Contrary to the species richness, the total fish abundance was 20% higher at the natural reefs. The fish assemblages of the artificial reefs differ significantly from those of the natural reefs. The natural reefs of the ESA are dominated by few fish species from families of lower trophic levels. In contrast, the studied shipwrecks provide refuge to commercially important fish species (such as Snappers, Triggerfish, Jacks, and Groupers) including threatened species. The different fish compositions on the natural and artificial reefs is likely to be the outcome of differential fishing pressure. The non-fished areas (wrecks) of the ESA may represent a good strategy for reef restoration, enhanced fishing grounds (via spillover) and fishing management. However, the fish community structure of the artificial reefs differs from natural rocky reefs of the ESA, and therefore, should not be considered as surrogate habitats for natural reefs. The results point out the need to reassess the management effectiveness of the natural reefs of the ESA.

过度捕捞是许多珊瑚礁的主要压力源，影响了它们的功能和生态系统服务。在加利福尼亚湾，50 年的手工和休闲捕鱼已经移除了大部分最大和最脆弱的鱼类，圣埃斯皮里图群岛 (ESA) 是一个海洋保护区 (MPA)，大部分地区都允许手工和休闲捕鱼天然礁石，而人工鱼礁（沉船）则得到充分保护。在这种情况下，一个重要的问题是人工鱼礁是否可以作为天然鱼礁的替代栖息地。为了解决这个问题，我们对鱼类群落（物种丰富度、丰度、分类结构差异）进行了表征，并通过多元排序和相似性分析分析了获得的数据。在人工鱼礁中发现了最高的物种丰富度，共有83种，其中21种是独家的。与物种丰富度相反，天然珊瑚礁的鱼类总丰度高出 20%。人工鱼礁的鱼类组合与天然鱼礁的鱼类组合存在显着差异。欧空局的天然珊瑚礁主要由来自较低营养级科的少数鱼类所支配。相比之下，所研究的沉船为包括受威胁物种在内的商业上重要的鱼类（如鲷鱼、扳机鱼、千斤顶和石斑鱼）提供了避难所。天然和人工珊瑚礁上的不同鱼类成分很可能是捕捞压力不同的结果。欧空局的非捕鱼区（沉船）可能是恢复珊瑚礁、扩大渔场（通过外溢）和捕鱼管理的好策略。然而，人工鱼礁的鱼类群落结构不同于欧空局的天然岩礁，因此不应被视为天然礁石的替代栖息地。结果表明需要重新评估欧空局天然珊瑚礁的管理有效性。